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and the audience to contact their legislators through the website at <br />£txworkerscornpensationnow. org, and urge them to act on workers' compensation reform <br />now rather than later. <br /> <br /> Mayor Pico asked Mr. Bouchard if he was saying that the Chamber wanted the <br />Council to act on the Governor's workers' compensation reform program, or was he <br />talking in more generic terms? <br /> <br /> Mr. Bouchard said that he was encouraging the members of the Pleasanton <br />Chamber of Commerce and employers who are not members of the Chamber to <br />encourage its legislators to act on the Governor's workers' compensation reform package <br />as it has been presented. The Board of Directors saw this as the best alternative, and <br />would take any reform over no reform. He believed that if no action was taken now, <br />nothing would happen for months to come. <br /> <br /> Again, Mayor Pico asked Mr. Bouchard ifSB x43 and AB x41 were the workers' <br />compensation package that he was referring to? <br /> <br />Mr. Bouchard said yes. <br /> <br /> Ms. Ayala thanked the Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce for cooperating with <br />Council. She was excited to see that the State Chamber of Commerce, as well as local <br />Chambers of Commerce, is taking action tomorrow. She mentioned that she and Mr. <br />Brozosky had sent letters to all of the legislators, and she was hopeful that there is action. <br /> <br /> Mr. Bouchard reported that Senator Poochigian recently sent out a memo to <br />business owners stating that progress is being made on SB x43 and AB x41. He <br />mentioned that the Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce would be hosting a workshop on <br />Workers' Compensation and the issues surrounding the reform as well as providing <br />information on how members of the business community can resolve their own issues <br />related to Workers' Compensation. The workshop will be held on Friday, February 20. <br />He noted that the Legislative Advocate of the California Chamber of Commerce would <br />be present, as well as Assemblymember Guy Houston representing the 15th Assembly <br />District, and William Zachery, Vice President for Cooperative Workers' Compensation <br />for Safeway Corporation, who will be present representing the private sector. <br /> <br /> Richard Asmrias, 1475 Cedarwood Lane, Ste. B, agreed that workers' <br />compensation legislation needed to be promoted to a second round. He pointed out that <br />the Governor has stated that unless something happens by March 1, he will push for a <br />ballot initiative. He believed there was a danger inherent in pushing something through <br />to a ballot initiative, which would not allow for it to go through the legislative process. <br />Currently, there is a process that is trying to create a bill for the Governor's desk, and he <br />believed this would occur sometime in mid-April rather than March 1. He did not believe <br />the City of Pleasanton should blindly accept SB x 43 and AB x41 without going through <br />the legislative process. If Council was going to support SB x43 and AB x41, he <br />suggested that it add that the proposed bills be amended. He did not believe the Workers' <br /> <br />Pleasanton City Council 30 02/17/04 <br />Minutes <br /> <br /> <br />